More Coverage: Game Action Gallery | Head Coach James Borrego Postgame | Brad Wanamaker Postgame | Jalen McDaniels Postgame
Making their first appearance since losing Gordon Hayward for several weeks due to a sprained foot, the Charlotte Hornets just simply couldn’t get their scoring going on Sunday evening, resulting in a 116-86 loss to the Boston Celtics at TD Garden.
Terry Rozier was one of the lone bright spots for Charlotte in the defeat, finishing with 22 points on 8-of-19 shooting, seven rebounds and four assists in 32 minutes of play. This outing against his former team marked Rozier’s sixth 20-point game in eight appearances and his first since the team’s road-trip opener against Washington last Tuesday night.
Charlotte led by one after the opening frame, but Boston kicked off the second on a 19-4 run and eventually outscored the Hornets, 33-17, in the quarter to take a 15-point halftime lead. The visitors kept struggling to score and never threatened the outcome in the second half, finishing the contest with a new season-low point total for the second time in three games.
“We have to find some rhythm offensively. It’s just going to take some time,” said Hornets Head Coach James Borrego after the loss. “Boston is a very good team. You have to give them credit – they played well tonight. We’re a work in progress. This is a great challenge for us and we move forward. I think our guys played hard. They did their best, but we move on.”
Devonte’ Graham (11 points) and Miles Bridges (10) were the only other Charlotte players to score in double figures. Cody Zeller, Brad Wanamaker and Jalen McDaniels all had seven points off the bench, Cody Martin added six more and two-way player Grant Riller made his NBA debut, although went 0-of-2 from the field.
Jayson Tatum had 22 points, eight rebounds and four assists for a Celtics squad that won its eighth consecutive home meeting with the Hornets. Jaylen Brown (17 points), Evan Fournier (17), Robert Williams III (16), Kemba Walker (12) and Marcus Smart (12) also joined Tatum in the double-digit scoring department.
Charlotte finished the game with 17 turnovers leading to 15 Boston points, while only scoring two points off a mere six Celtics giveaways. And although the purple and teal managed to shoot 40% from the field, the team went just 10-of-31 from three (32%) and also just 12-of-20 from the charity stripe (60%).
The Hornets will now have a rare two-day break before their road game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday, April 7 beginning at 8 PM EST. Catch the action on Bally Sports and WFNZ 610 AM or 102.5 FM.